Issue 304 | 13th April 2016

Taco Bell has introduced the world’s first TacoBot – giving you a peek into the future of ordering. If you use the group messenger app Slack (and millions around the world do), you’ll now be able to order Taco Bell in seconds. They’re selling Tacobot as a “new friend” and it should be treated as such. Customers can ask it questions about the menu, see how it’s feeling or find out what its favourite movie is. From there customers connect their ta.co account, choose a pickup location and order up an item. TacoBot is currently in testing mode, but Slack users in the US can join the waitlist in the meantime. Here’s a sneak peak:

To concert lovers and gig fans, seeing your favourite musical artists is about to get a whole lot easier. Ticketmaster will start selling tickets for a limited number of events on the social platform by the end of April. By allowing users the ability to buy tickets directly within Facebook, the social media giant will be able to provide a more seamless purchase experience and as a result, Ticketmaster will hopefully sell more tickets. As of yet, Ticketmaster have not disclosed where on Facebook the tickets will be sold, but the partnership could socialise going to music shows and other various events like never before.

Singers Nick Jonas and Alice Cooper join actress Chloë Sevigny among a handful of other celebrities, starring in their own 15 second spot for the new Apple Watch. “Row,” “Chase,” and “Golf” all highlight the fitness capabilities of the Apple Watch. Each ad shows a celeb using the watch to track their fitness progress using the Activity app. Other inclusions “Find,” and “Rain” showcase a string of other new features of the latest design, which you can view on Apple’s YouTube channel. The ads are arguably reminiscent of the brand’s illustrious Apple iPod ads from years ago, with a single colour background and relatively simple execution. Here’s “Find” starring Chloë Sevigny:

App of the week

Bingee is a smartphone app that wants to enable the social viewing of yesteryear for the on-demand digital TV era. Streaming platforms like Netflix and Stan, has freed the viewer from the constrains of scheduling, but has also meant a loss of sense of community that comes from an entire nation watching the series finale of Friends at the same time. This dedicated second-screen experience allows groups to binge-watch: publicly with fellow fans, or privately with selected friends. The app also customises connections among users by allowing viewers to connect with fellow fans or with friends. Users also have the option of ‘Private’ viewing, meaning they can invite people to join invite-only binge-watching sessions.

U.K grocery chain Waitrose has come up with a novel way to highlight the quality of its food production. The campaign will include TV spots recorded and aired the same day, filmed from the point of view of ‘Mo the Cow’ and his farm friends using GoPro’s and other webcam devices. There has been consumer demand for decades to see exactly how farm produce is sourced, and shoppers want to be reassured that they’re getting the best. The John Lewis-owned retailer says they want to be authentic and open, and the only way to do this is to show consumers in an immediate way, just how their food is sourced. Live streaming will launch on 15th April, and TV ads will follow along with out-of-home media featuring the footage.

Facebook has responded to the evolving media landscape by updating their branded content policy to enable verified Pages to share branded content on Facebook. Basically, anyone who runs a verified Facebook page can now post content that someone else has paid for including links, photos, texts, videos, 360 videos, Live videos, and Instant Articles without needing Facebook’s permission or cutting the company in on the proceeds. Publishers and influencers can now gain incentive to share more quality content of all kinds with their fans. Read more about the change on Facebook’s blog.